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Meg Rowley FanGraphs Chat - 7/17/18
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Meg Rowley
12:00
Good morning all, and welcome to the chat!
12:01
As I mentioned last week, there is likely to be a bit of shifting around with the Tuesday schedule in the weeks to come so that we aren't doubling up on chats.
But until then, here I am!
Waltharius
12:01
Why would LAD need Machado? They have enough hitting in Taylor at SS, and Turner at 3B
Meg Rowley
12:03
It allows them to move on from Forsythe. Heyman had a tweet on how they'd shift around the infield and I imagine it's pretty close to what you'd see.
Rox Rox Purple Sox
12:03
Rockies have a ton of infield prospects in the pipeline (Bregman, Hampson, Welker). Do you think those guys factor into a decision to resign LeMahieu this year, or are they too far away?
Meg Rowley
12:05
I think future guys almost always factor.
Hampson probably isn't so far off-- I think Eric's preseason Rockies list had his ETA in 2019, though I'm not sure if that has changed.
12:06
Welker is further afield.
All that said, the Rockies do some weird-ass stuff with their money sometimes so shrug emoji?
Bort
12:06
Mike Zunino seemed so promising going into the year. Is the bloom finally off this particular rose?
Meg Rowley
12:07
Bummer of a year for him. The defense was very good again, but he looked lost at the plate again, and then with the injury, I worry there's not going to be enough of a good run for this to feel like anything more than a wasted season.
Zunino has a very narrow path to success at the plate. The power will always save him some, and he was still close to a league average hitter, which for a catcher isn't terrible.
12:08
But as a fan of his, it's been a bummer. Hopefully he comes back ok from the ankle injury.
Daniel L
12:08
The Padres have not developed a good hitter since Tony Gwynn. Any worries that Tatis Jr, Urias and even Margot won't hit?
Meg Rowley
12:09
I'm not in the habit of thinking an organization can just never do something.
All sorts of folks come and go from player development staffs.
stever20
12:09
Why doesn't MLB get more credit for all the good things they do?  HR Derby change was great.  the MLB game at the Little League World Series- phenominal.  Next year game at College World Series- great idea...
Meg Rowley
12:10
Well we watch those things, so I'm not sure what additional credit they really require?
12:11
I think there is a conversation to be had about how we balance the necessary fretting about the game and its future (which is the league's job), with a clear acknowledgement that baseball is just so freaking the best thing, but we don't have to go out of our way to pat brands on the back.
Brands will never love you back enough.
Outsider
12:11
How can normal people like you or me try to evaluate prospects in the time between list releases?
Meg Rowley
12:12
I think it depends what you mean by evaluate.
All of the best talent evaluators I know, and you are right to cast me among the normals, use a combination of stats and live looks at players.
12:13
Now, you and I are used to watching baseball a particular way, and that isn't necessarily the way that someone like Eric or Kiley watches, but if you have a local minor league affiliate, I'd recommend going and checking it out, and watching from different vantages in the park.
12:14
I'd recommend going to minor league games just generally. It's a very different experience.
stever20
12:14
Could the Nationals have drawn up a better scenario for Harper than last night?  Do you think this wakes up the Nationals, or was it just a 1 night thing?
Meg Rowley
12:14
I don't know that we know that they're actually sleepy, so much as having a weird year when they really ought to be better, even with the injuries, but that had to feel amazing for them, and for their fans.
12:15
Since the format change, I've gone into each derby thinking, "I'm Meg, and while I'm not cool per se, I'm cool enough not to like this" and then I just like it anyway.
Rockie Dangerfield
12:15
Just like Peter Pan once implored the audience to clap their hands to save Tinkerbell, I need everybody reading here today to send whatever energy they can spare to will the Orioles' front office to send Machado to the Phillies and not the Dodgers.  C'mon Fangraphs, do it for the rest of the NL West!
Meg Rowley
12:16
As you might imagine, a lotttt of the queue this morning is about Machado, so I've been polling some writer friends and team folks, and well, we have bad news, because I think we all think he ends up in LA.
12:17
As a person who watches baseball faces, I am rooting for this news to hit the dugouts during the game tonight. My job is very strange.
Kevin
12:17
Really enjoyed your "On Liking Jean Segura" article from last week. Was not expecting you to pivot to human flesh eating, which had me bursting out laughing!
Meg Rowley
12:18
I am glad you liked it. I'm always worried that I won't strike the right balance between being funny and being Too Much, but I'm glad that one worked for you.
Rox Rox Purple Sox
12:18
Is Jon Gray back for good? Looked like an ace against my Mariners :(
Meg Rowley
12:19
I think he's back for a while. I'm glad they gave him a mental reset. That's isn't meant as a knock on Gray, to be clear. He's been having just a wildly strange season, and it has to have been so frustrating for a guy who is a genuinely good pitcher, and sometimes you just need a chance to catch your breath with no one looking at you.
Ya Boi
12:20
Gotta give it to the Angels for trying to surround Trout with talent to win, but realistically what's the chance the Angels win a World Series with Trout?
Meg Rowley
12:21
This year? Very low. Next year... obviously a lot depends on what happens with their pitching generally and with Ohtani specifically, but part of me will always think that if they can just squeak through the Wild Card they have some sort of shot because jeez, it's Mike Trout.
mcmadbat
12:21
Has there been any research done with using neural networks to predict player performance?
Meg Rowley
12:22
I don't know that the answer is no, but I sort of hope that the answer is no because that sounds like the beginning of a sci-fi movie where we look back and wonder how we didn't see the end of the world coming.
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